Neck Cheese

Ok so, as you may know, babies have several extra folds than a grow human typically would have.

I have been doing my very best to keep my baby clean and dry but I seem to be failing. A foul odor emits from her neck and I have noticed that her skin is breaking down in that area, which is causing the smell. It doesn't seem to bother her, but the smell is awful and I am worried about an infection. I have had suggestions of using baby powder but I have opted not to use baby powder with my baby because it may contain talc, which is toxic. My mother suggested using corn starch as a substitute to absorb the extra moisture.

Anyone else have any bright ideas, suggestions or is battling the same issue?

Comments (15)

My son is 6 months old and he still has this. The doctor said its harmless and to just keep him clean. My son drools a lot so he's constantly soaked! I like to give him a nice bath at the end of the day and clean under his neck really well. I dry him the best I can and the smell is gone. During the day I take a baby wipe and occasionally wipe under his neck and put a tiny bit of corn starch under it. I notice if I put too much his drool just makes it clump up.

Both my girls had this same problem (one more than the other!). We found that keeping it clean, swiping it with a cool washcloth day and night, then applying Aquaphor, worked best for us. They do make baby powders without talc, which we tried, but found the Aquaphor to work much better, as it created a barrier between the formula/spit and skin. Good luck!

Just keep it super clean! My LO led a few times before I realized just how often I had to clean and dry under the neck, and I used Vaseline when it was really bad. A lot of the time there was an even more hidden layer that I would miss, though. So I would just say to do your best at finding it all and keeping it clean! Yeast loves dark, wet, warm areas!

Cornstartch can lead to yeast infection, since the starch will feed the bacteria. Also, keep it clean and dry. If you Dont want a prescription, yeast infection cream will work or diaper rash cream is also effective. I used baby wipes to clean after every feed. At about 6-8months they outgrow the neck folds and problem goes away on its own

If it is yeast, bm will make it worse because of the sugar in it. That's why if baby has thrush and you bf you have to treat it with something besides bm. Bm is the miracle cure for everything else, though lol.